L’Île-Saint-Louis is one of our favourite places in Paris. Not only is it a lovely place, but the island seems forgotten by tourists. In any case, we don’t find there the hordes of visitors who invade Île-de-la-Cité. Perhaps this is due to the fact that there is no iconic buildings on Île-Saint-Louis; simply a beautiful architectural unity and a pleasant tranquility.

L’Île Saint-Louis is one of the first planned urban development in Paris in the 17th century. The street plan is on a checkerboard model where streets intersect at right angles; a fairly rare fact in Paris. At first, the island was home to artisans and wealthy merchants who settled along its inner streets, with people of higher rank, noble or middle-class, who preferred building their mansions on the river banks. The island lost the favour of the elites in the 18th century to become popular again after the Second World War with the arrival of painters, actors , singers, politicians and lovers of old Paris.

Quelques photos pour vous la faire visiter / A few pictures to give you a tour:Quai de Béthune: La belle lumière de décembre baignait l’endroit…Paris est toujours magique quand il fait soleil. / The beautiful light of december bathed the place…Paris is always beautiful when the sun is out.Quai d’Orléans: Les beaux hôtels particuliers dans le soleil avec une vue sur l’arrière de Notre-Dame-de-Paris. / Beautiful mansions in the sun with a view of the back of Notre-Dame-de-Paris.Il y a de superbes détails pour ceux qui prennent le temps de bien regarder. De belles portes qui cachent des cours, des fenêtres entourées de fleurs, des portes et fenêtres qui montrent leur âges, des goutières très décorées et des sculptures qui décorent les façades. / There are superb details for those who take the time to look. Beautiful doors that hide courtyard, windows surrounded by flowers, doors and windows that show their ages, highly decorated gutters and sculptures that decorate the facades.Berthillon: Une institution sur l’Île-St-Louis – le seul endroit visité par les touristes sur l’île. Ils fabriquent des glaces artisanales depuis 1954 et je peux vous dire qu’elles sont très bonnes! / An institution on the Île-St-Louis – the only place visited by tourists on the island. They have been making homemade ice cream since 1954 and I can tell you they are very good!

Share this:

Like this:

Post navigation

6 thoughts on “Île-Saint-Louis”

I took an evening bike tour of Paris a few years ago and we stopped at that ice cream place for a break. Very good indeed! I seem to recall the guide mentioning that film star Johnny Depp lives on the island. Probably many celebrities do. Because it’s central, but somehow isolated from the tourists.

Hi Anthony: I think you are right about Johnny Deep…it rings a bell. He was married to Vanessa Paradis for a while so having a place in Paris seems logical. I know that the French actor Daniel Auteuil lives there as well. There are all kind of famous people but as I don’t follow that crowd, I don’t really know who else lives there.

Hi Suzanne! I think it must have been at Berthillon that we encountered, a few years back, a very “interesting” restroom arrangement. Interesting enough that the restroom visit was suddenly not really needed so much. And I will leave it at that!🙂 LOVED L’île-Saint-Louis, however, and agree with you that it is a hidden gem and very much worth a visit!

Hi Cindy: So good to hear from you…As for the restroom “arrangements” they are very frequently seen in Paris. Actually, it is one of my issue about living in Paris – a good chunk of it smells of piss!!! Glad you enjoyed Ile-Saint-Louis and our post talking about it.

Well, yes, there was that – and it was quite surprising.🙂 But, more specifically, I was caught off-guard by the squat toilet (hole in the ground) in a cafe restroom on Ile-Saint-Louis. Wondering,now, whether it might have been Berthillon…

Oops…sorry, I misunderstood your challenge. We called them “turkish toilet” (not certain why) and they are still very frequent in Paris and in France. I still haven’t gotten used to them but if absolutely necessary I can manage!